David Costabile

A prolific and well-respected character actor on television throughout the 2000s, David Costabile played intense, occasionally offbeat figures on such critical and audience hits as "Flight of the Conchords" (HBO 2007-09), "The Wire" (HBO 2002-08) "Damages" (FX/DirecTV Network 2007-2012) and "Breaking Bad" (AMC 2008-2013). Costabile emerged from the New York theater scene in the late 1990s to work steadily if somewhat anonymously in features and on television. He hit his stride in the late 2000s with simultaneous recurring roles on "Conchords," "The Wire" and "Damages." Each was very different from the other, which underscored his versatility. Costabile soon moved into major supporting roles before landing his fourth standout recurring character, the eccentric chemist Gale Boetticher, on "Breaking Bad." The critical and audience praise heaped on that series boosted Costabile's profile, affording him access to major projects like Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" (2012). But he soon returned to network television, joining the cast of the ratings-challenged but critically praised "Low Winter Sun" (AMC 2013), which allowed him to parlay his particular talent of disappearing into roles with remarkable skill and affirming his status as one of the better character actors of the 21st century.